Immortal Hulk #36
Tom Caniglia
Recap
Last issue, Betty the Harpy Monster walked (flew) out on Bruce and the Gamma Base. The Savage Hulk showed up for a PR visit to a small town but Rick Jones went too, Rick is posessed by The Leader, and he secretly caused the Hulk to explode and explode the town's Mayor with him on National TV.
Devil Hulk is still trapped in Bruce's subconscious.
Review
The problem with writing in five-issue arcs to be collected later in graphic novels is that issues often don’t have a story structure on their own. It takes a particular talent to make every issue in a five-part story seem like a worthwhile read on their own. If not, it’s what we call a “filler issue”.
Immortal Hulk #36 was a filler issue for me. Sure, it has a big fight, but at the end of the issue the story hasn’t progressed much at all from where we left off at the end of #35. These aren’t issues I tend to enjoy, so there isn’t much for me to say about it.
The Hulk is upset, Rick/Leader’s body has been twisted into a pretzel, and the Hulkbusters (Puck, Absorbing Man, and Titania) show up and a huge fight happens. Absorbing Man decides he should turn himself into Gamma. It makes for a nice image.
Back at Gammabase, a gamma-irradiated man that has been held in a big plexiglass stasis tube breaks out. The end.
I usually can’t wait to write the review for a Hulk issue, but filler issues are such a drag. Joe Bennett does grace us with some great art. However, last issue was guest pencilled by Mike Hawthorne, and Mr. Hawthorne did something Bennett doesn’t bother to do, which is to draw the Savage Hulk AS the Savage Hulk.
Final Thoughts
Immortal Hulk #36 (Ewing, Bennet) feels like a filler issue, a side-effect of writing for the trade. Still a cut above the standard issue these days, but hard to appreciate in its own right.
The Immortal Hulk #36: Just a Blip
- Writing - 6/106/10
- Storyline - 7/107/10
- Art - 8/108/10
- Color - 8/108/10
- Cover Art - 10/1010/10
